Manager, give me a membership card too!

At the same time, Rorschach's blue heraldic shield collided violently with the silver shield in the hands of the Lothric Knight. The force was so great that both of them were forced to take two steps back uncontrollably.

That's more like it! That's more like it! This is what the elite forces of the Kingdom of Lothric, which dominates the entire continent, should look like. As expected of an army belonging to the same faction as the Farron Undead Legion, their strength, speed, and skill are astounding. Even as undead, they still possess such combat power. I wonder what kind of power they had when they were alive.

Unfortunately, it's still not a living person.

Rorschach stepped back, sword in hand, but did not choose to continue his attack. Right before him, the Lothric knight who had just been fighting him to a standstill had been reduced to a pile of dust and vanished into thin air.

With a somewhat disappointed sigh, Rorschach stepped forward and began absorbing the unclaimed souls left behind by the knight.

It's rare to encounter a skilled opponent who can hold their own against me, but who knew they'd die so easily? What a pity, now it'll probably be another boring journey of crushing weaker opponents.

The man, who was thinking this, was about to turn and leave when his expression suddenly changed. He turned back to look at the room where the knight had appeared earlier. There, countless sharp metallic scraping sounds were slowly approaching.

'Staggering~Staggering~Staggering~'

Chapter 176 To Pass It On or Not? (4200+ words)

Chapter 176 To Pass It On or Not? (The extra 200 words in this chapter are ellipses to compensate for the lack of words in this chapter)

On the magnificent and ancient walls of Lothric, the sounds of countless metal clashing echoed in all directions. Under the dim sunlight, dozens of silver-armored knights with crimson cloaks silently surrounded a figure within their encirclement.

Broken swords and blades came from all directions, and the man at the center of the battle wielded his knight's sword, dealing with the attacks of the surrounding knights with increasing skill.

Thrust, vertical slash, horizontal sweep, diagonal slash, upward thrust, follow-through slash, leaping slash, shield bash. All sword techniques in the world, whether ornate or simple, ultimately return to these basic movements. They may have variations, and there may be unexpected ways of releasing them, but when these sword techniques attack the human body, they are ultimately only in those nine directions.

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When it comes to swordsmanship, Luo Xia, who inherited the skill of "shooting down a hundred heads," believes he has some expertise. Especially now that his strength is gradually recovering, even when facing attacks from dozens of people, Luo Xia went from being caught off guard and hastily fighting back to later handling the attacks from all directions with ease.

After all, the space is only so big, and only six or seven people can fight against him at a time. The rest of the knights basically stand coldly outside the circle, watching the fierce battle between the two sides.

But as the fight went on, Rorschach gradually sensed something was amiss. Apart from the initial fierce offensive, the Lothric knights' responses to his battles became increasingly incomprehensible.

Given their previous skills, these knights could have easily dodged or blocked some of the attacks, but instead, they took Rorschach's attacks head-on without flinching. With this desperate fighting style, they fell one by one to Rorschach's sword, looking... as if they were actively seeking death.

Something's not right, something's really not right.

A shield bash sent a Lothric knight who was trying to attack him from the side flying, and Rorschach swept his sword to force back other knights who wanted to fight, then took a step back and stood in a corner of the city wall.

Seeing that Rorschach had sheathed his sword and was clearly not going to continue fighting, the remaining knights subconsciously stopped their attack and returned to the group of knights who had quietly stood up.

However, not all knights would stop. Several knights, whose movements were obviously more frantic and who were letting out hoarse, inexplicable growls, saw that Rorschach had given up resistance and immediately roared as they raised their weapons and charged toward Rorschach.

Before Luo Xia could retaliate, something happened that surprised him somewhat, yet also seemed rather natural.

Faced with their comrades who had gone mad, several knights closest to these crazed knights decisively raised their weapons and stabbed them mercilessly into the bodies of their former companions, then twisted them violently.

The next second, these seemingly crazed knights slowly collapsed beside their comrades. Then, under the silent gaze of everyone present, wisps of pale mist drifted out from their bodies, flowing one after another into the body of Rorschach, who stood silently beside them, like weary birds returning to their nests.

As the souls successfully entered Luo Xia's body, the eyes of all the remaining knights, hidden behind their tattered helmets, turned fiery, fixed intently on Luo Xia, who stood quietly by the city wall, sword sheathed.

Before Luo Xia could say anything, several knights among the remaining dozens of knights, whose armor appeared to be the most tattered and whose aura was extremely unstable, exchanged tacit glances, slowly stepped out of their ranks, and silently raised their weapons to 'attack' Luo Xia.

The attacking knights used wide, sweeping moves, their actions wild and unrestrained. Just as Rorschach parried a thrusting lance, he suddenly felt a weight on his hand. The attacking knight had actually met Rorschach's sword head-on, allowing the sharp knight's sword to pierce straight into the gap in his chest armor, completely piercing through his decaying heart.

"you?!"

Faced with an enemy who was actively seeking death, Luo Xia was momentarily stunned, but the others wouldn't give him a chance to freeze.

Feeling a gust of wind coming from behind his head, Luo Xia subconsciously shook off the corpse on his sword and instinctively used an upward slash from the Hundred Head Shooting School of swordsmanship.

'Pfft~'

The sharp blade pierced through the tattered armor, sliced ​​through the decaying skin and muscles, severed the pale bones, cut through the broken internal organs, and finally lifted the dark red, worn cloak on the knight's back high.

Looking at the longsword that was clearly pierced crookedly to the side of his face, Luo Xia frowned and pulled his own knight's sword from the knight's body, then looked at the remaining two opponents who were gradually approaching.

'Thump~ thump~'

With a heavy thud, two mangled bodies slowly fell to the ground. Instinctively, Rorschach looked up at the Lothric knights who had surrounded him. As he expected, several more knights, in better condition than the previous ones, stepped forward and silently raised their weapons at Rorschach.

"and many more!"

As yet another group of knights, seemingly on their way to their deaths, approached him, Rorschach shouted to stop them. He'd been hoping to talk to a group of locals who still seemed to have some semblance of consciousness, a rare occurrence. Unfortunately, these knights lacked the usual male enthusiasm. Their faces beneath their armor were solemn, their eyes resolute, as if they were undertaking some sacred mission, charging towards Rorschach with their weapons raised high.

One, two, three, ten, twenty, thirty...

In just ten minutes, the ground around Rorschach was densely packed with the corpses of Lothric knights, but there was no trace of pleasure on his face. Even though he had once again filled his body with unclaimed souls, this was not the way he desired.

"why?"

Silently raising his head, Rorschach looked at the sole surviving Lothric knight. This knight was tall, and his armor was cleaner than the others. Most importantly, this man seemed to possess a clearer mind than the others. During the initial fierce battle, Rorschach had seen this tall knight command the other knights to surround and attack him more than once.

"The fire is gradually dying down...and the king's shadow is nowhere to be seen..."

In response to Rorschach's question, the tall knight commander slowly drew his greatsword from his back and spoke in a hoarse and slow voice.

"The king... shirked his responsibilities... We... launched a rebellion... for... Lothric..."

As the tall commander finished speaking, a powerful and heavy slash followed.

'Clang!'

"Darkness... has enveloped the city... the fire... is about to go out... we... have no other choice..."

Beneath the Knight Commander's towering frame, even larger than Rorschach's, lay an unbelievably swift and agile movement. When facing this formidable foe, Rorschach even had the illusion that he was still facing the Ash Keeper, Gundyr.

"We...failed...lost our honor...lost our comrades...lost our future..."

Two equally tall and robust figures crossed paths on this wide city wall, their sharp swords clashing and sparking, reflecting the sorrowful yet resolute eyes beneath the knight commander's helmet.

"The flames... must endure... Lothric... shall never perish... even at the cost of everything..."

Two sharp swords clashed, and two tall figures were locked in a primal struggle. There were no techniques, no moves, only the most basic contest of strength between men; the winner lived, and the loser died.

Rorschach, however, survived.

Looking at the greatsword that had been cleaved into the earth beside him, and then at the knight commander before him, nearly severed in two by his own blade, Rorschach's lips moved, and he let out a soft sigh:

Is it worth it?

Beneath the knight commander's helmet was a hideous zombie face, but at this moment, a bright, radiant smile appeared on that face, making it impossible to associate it with 'ugliness'.

"Of course...it's worth it..."

"For...Lothric..."

"Everything... is in your hands... 'King'..."

Feeling the now slightly stronger, unclaimed soul within him, and gazing at the tall, lifeless body before him, Luo Xia silently raised his longsword and decapitated the creature.

Rorschach picked up the knight commander's head that had fallen to the ground, wiped off the dust, and placed it in the man's arms. He then pulled several crimson Lothric banners from the nearby city wall, sharpened the base of the banners with his longsword, and plunged them fiercely into the knight commander's body, which he had positioned in a special pose.

Not only the knight commanders, but after doing all this, Rorschach silently cut off the heads of all the Lothric knights around him, placed them in their arms, and then tirelessly ran all over the nearby city walls and armories, finding enough military flags to plant in the bodies of these knights who died for their ideals.

Among the knights of Lothric, a very special ritual is popular.

The 'alliance ceremony' is also called the 'beheading ceremony'.

Only those Lothric knights who have distinguished themselves or died in battle are entitled to cut off their own heads and 'decorate' their bodies with the banners and weapons of the army they served, in order to show their loyalty and honor in shedding their last drop of blood for the Kingdom of Lothric.

Originally, these knights who participated in the rebellion against the royal family were not qualified to perform such a sacred ceremony. Regardless of their purpose, their act of forcibly attacking the kingdom's forces was an undeniable crime of treason, and they were no longer qualified to call themselves 'Knights of Lothric,' and naturally, they were not qualified to enjoy the sacred ceremony that only knights were entitled to perform.

But to Rorschach, these men were true warriors. Whether or not the Flame would be passed on was irrelevant. From the perspective of the Knights of Lothric, continuing the kingdom was the most righteous thing to do. The fate of countless ordinary people throughout the land rested on their shoulders, and they resolutely raised their swords for the sake of their country, even against the very royal family they were supposed to be loyal to.

The knights of Lothric are right to link the fire, because only by linking the fire can everyone survive, and the kingdom and its people endure. As for the drawbacks of linking the fire? What do those have to do with those of them living in the present? If the fire goes out, they will all die; they can't even see that future, which they don't know if it even exists.

The royalist knights of Lothric were right; in their eyes, whether or not the torch was passed on was unimportant—what mattered was their loyalty to the royal family. The destruction of the world? What did it matter to them? Their duty was simply to serve the two princes. Having fulfilled their oath, they had no reason to be criticized by others.

There is no true right or wrong in this world, only one's standpoint. The struggle between the Firelinkers and the Royalists was merely them fulfilling their duties; in a sense, they were both heroes of Lothric. One was a hero of the kingdom, the other a hero of the king.

Gently straightening the head in his hands, Rorschach turned around and took a deep look in the direction of the capital city of Lothric.

The question of whether or not to pass on the fire has always been a hot topic among Dark Souls players. As a Dark Souls player, Rorschach has tried almost every possible solution, except for the ending that harms the Fire Keeper, which he only watched videos about. In Rorschach's own opinion, it's definitely better not to pass on the fire.

The first generation was the undead, the second generation was the zombies, and the third generation was ashes.

While Dark Souls III shows that in both Dark Souls I and II, each act of linking the First Flame successfully saved the world, allowing it to regain its vitality and giving birth to countless brilliant and glorious civilizations, Dark Souls III even saw the emergence of nations like Lothric, who took linking the First Flame as their mission and used it to maintain the legitimacy of their kingdom.

However, we can also see that as the linking of the fire continues, the scale of the First Flame is decreasing uncontrollably. The world is almost at the point where there is nothing left to burn, and we need to drag out the ashes that have been almost burned to prolong its life.

Even if they continue to kindle the flame, it will likely only be a precarious existence, a forced prolongation of life. In a few years, it will probably be another tragic cycle, and by then, who knows if there will be any more ashes left to burn?

Perhaps it's better to give up and try your luck at the glimmer of light at the end of darkness, as the woman who passed on the fire spoke of. Maybe it's another new flame, capable of composing another epic legend.

However, all of this was initiated by the players as a third party, the Ashes, with the detached and indifferent perspective of the players. To the original inhabitants of this world, the extinguishing of the flames was no different from the apocalypse. Even if a new flame and a new world truly existed at the end of the darkness, they would no longer belong to them, the inhabitants of the 'old era'.

Regardless of whether the ritual of linking the First Flame was a conspiracy by the Gwyn gods to rule humanity, for countless lives in this world, the burning of the First Flame was their guarantee of survival. When the flame went out, their deaths were imminent. The dilapidated world before Rorschach's eyes, and the scene of everything collapsing towards the First Flame in the Ringed City DLC, all foreshadowed that the moment the flame was extinguished would be the day this world was destroyed.

Looking back at the Lothric knights he had neatly arranged by the city wall, who continued to guard their country even in death, Rorschach drew his longsword and held it to his forehead, silently performing a standard knightly bow. Then, without turning his head, he left, leaving behind a group of silent knights 'holding' their military banners, bathed in the dim sunlight of Lothric.

I got Black C8 today (purely), I wonder if I'll be able to pull it? I failed in Arknights, FGO, and Honkai Impact 3, I can't fail in Princess Connect again, right?

Chapter 177 The Gift (4000+ words)

Chapter 177 The Gift (4000+ words)

In the dim and chilly center of the fire-lighting ritual site, the dazzling campfire silently radiated light and heat, illuminating the surrounding darkness. Suddenly, a dazzling flame burst forth from the fire, burning fiercely in mid-air.

The next second, a graceful figure emerged from the flames, wielding a spiral sword. With her smooth silver braids, a jewel-encrusted metal eye patch, and a stunning figure that seemed to burst forth from beneath her magnificent long dress, she was none other than the Fire Keeper, the guardian of the Firelink Shrine.

Upon returning to the Firelink Shrine, the Fire Keeper, without even glancing at the flames, raised her hand and plunged her spiral sword into the campfire before her. Then, she straightened her neat and beautiful clothes, a serene and gentle smile appearing on her face as she silently watched the burning campfire.

Less than ten seconds after the Fire Keeper finished doing all this, another dazzling flame shot out from the bonfire in the center of the Firelink Shrine, burning fiercely in mid-air. This time, however, it was not a beautiful silver-haired woman who emerged from the flame, but a tall, fully armed knight.

"Welcome back, Lord Ash. Is there anything I can help you with?"

Seeing Rorschach emerge from the flames, the Fire Keeper smiled and stepped forward, standing before the man. She extended her palm and gently wiped away a smudge that had somehow gotten on Rorschach's cheek. She wiped it so carefully and gently, as if cleaning some fragile and precious treasure. Her cautious manner made Rorschach instinctively stop in his tracks, letting the Fire Keeper do as she pleased.

"Hmm, now it's clean."

While tidying up Rorschach's clothes, which were somewhat disheveled from the intense battle, the Fire Keeper's smile curved upwards, like a blooming flower.

"Lord Ash, please take care of your safety while you are out and about. I will be here to pray for you and wish you a safe journey."

Having completed her inspection, the Fire Keeper smiled, took a step back, gave a slight bow, and quietly awaited Rorschach's next instructions.

Subconsciously touching the side of his face that the Fire Keeper had just wiped, Rorschach stretched out his right hand, and with a flick of his wrist, a huge, ferocious dragon head appeared in his hand.

"Fire Keeper, where's Andrei? I'd like to ask him to forge some things."

Looking towards the spot in the fire-lighting sacrificial site where the blacksmith Andrei should have been, the hammer and felt were still there, but the old man with white hair and beard was nowhere to be seen.

"I'm sorry, Lord Ash. Andrei... has already left the Firelink Shrine."

"Left?"

Luo Xia frowned, glancing somewhat troubledly at the ferocious dragon head in his hand. Many of the equipment and items in the Soul World differed from those in the real world; generally, dealing with such items required finding a specialist.

Andrei, the blacksmith, was one of the best at it.

This blacksmith, who has survived since the first Dark Souls game, has been responsible for selling weapons, repairing equipment, and forging souls for the series' main characters. He can craft not only rugged and imposing weapons but also exquisitely crafted items. It was precisely because of this second skill that Rorschach came to him with the dragon head, wanting the blacksmith to make him a few dragon horn combs.

But now, the situation is a bit awkward. The blacksmith, Andrei, is nowhere to be found—something that has never happened before in the game.

Looking around the desolate and lonely Firelinking Ritual Site, he found himself alone in the vast stone hall with only the Firelinking Woman present; none of the other characters who should have been there were to be seen.

Rorschach noticed this when he first arrived, but at the time he thought it was a correction of the game becoming reality. After all, real life is different from data; it doesn't stay steadfastly at its post 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. It has to move around. The original work already had plots of characters leaving and joining, so Rorschach wasn't surprised.

But now he couldn't help but wonder. He had fought for hours on the high walls of Lothric, and whatever else could have happened, he should have returned to this place. But looking around, there was no one else besides himself and the Fire Keeper.

Blacksmith Andre, Disheartened Hawkwood, the old woman in red, and the exile Ludows have all vanished without a trace. Especially the last exile, Ludows—this Lord of Cinder has both legs broken; where could he have gone?

It's important to understand that before the bells tolled and the ashes were rekindled, the world had already fallen into darkness. This can be seen from the fact that many of the monsters in the game carry small lanterns hanging from their waists, and that candles and other lighting items are placed in various locations.

Because the world was plunged into darkness, and only candlelight and lanterns could illuminate the surroundings. It was precisely this terrifying darkness that prompted the Knights of Lothric, the Faction of the One Who Linked the Fire, to stage a coup. Everything that had happened told them that if the Fire was not linked, everyone in the world would die.

Humans cannot survive in darkness.

Food alone is a difficult problem to solve.

This continued until the bells of the Firelink Shrine rang, and the Lords of Cinder, already burned once, rose again to ignite the world once more with their broken bodies. And the one who ignited the world was Ludows the Exile.

All the other Lords of Cinder have left the throne, except for Ludows the Exile, who remains on it, using his broken body to buy time for the next Lord of Cinder, to illuminate the world, and to bring light back to this land shrouded in darkness.

Therefore, whether Ludovic willingly sat on the throne to prolong the world's life, or whether, as some online jokes suggest, the Firelink Lady or another Lord of Cinder broke Ludovic's legs and forced him to burn himself to maintain the flame, it remains to be seen whether he did so willingly.